Families everywhere are eagerly anticipating the long, lazy days of summer especially if the school year has been hectic and most likely overscheduled. Summer vacation is indeed a special stretch of time when everyone can unwind, and stray a bit from the rigid schedules that are followed throughout the school year.

Now that backpacks and lunchboxes have been neatly tucked away for the next couple of months here are Mighty Mommy’s 6 fun ideas to help your child have his/her best summer ever

Tip #1: Create a Summer “To Do” List

During the last week of school, my family creates our Summer “To Do” List. I design a page on the computer with seashells, beach umbrellas, and anything else that means summer.

Then everyone in the family (including Mom and Dad) list at least two fun things that they’d like to do. Items this year include deep sea fishing, white-water rafting, attending our local country fair, making homemade truffles, and creating a home movie theater in our family room. The object of the list is to make sure each family member gets to do a couple of things that they really want besides the usual going to the beach or pool, seeing movies, etc.

Tip #2: Establish Regular Down Time

For many years I had 8 young kids under the age of 12 home for the 10 weeks of summer vacation. I remember the painstaking hours I would spend planning hours and hours of activities that would keep them entertained and happy while they were out of school. If you think you have to entertain your kids all day long during summer vacation, I hope you’ll pay close attention to this tip—instead of trying to occupy the majority of their free time, instead, establish regular quiet time for every member of the family, every day of the week.

I used to set the kitchen timer when they were younger to cue them in that it was down time. Many afternoons we only took about 30 minutes to sneak off to our bedrooms with a book to read, or to just take a quick powernap. The idea is to teach your kids to settle down and learn to spend some quality time alone. This way, you can all finish out the day a bit more refreshed, and more importantly, the kids will learn to rely on themselves to stay occupied once in a while so you don’t have to be their constant source of entertainment.

Tip #3: Try Something New This Summer

Summer is the perfect time to get creative and try something new. There’s no pressure with school activities or organized sports so with a bit more free time in your schedule encourage your kids to give a new hobby a try. Pottery, snorkeling, kayaking, pastry making, horseback riding or perhaps learning CPR. Trying new activities are a great way to expand your child’s horizons and let them discover some new talents. What a fun way to enjoy summer break and then return to the new school year with some new experiences to share with classmates and teachers.